Are all these people under water right now? Any flips or resellers yet?

Posted by: kuroko at September 15, 2009 2:09 PM in response to The Novo Sells Out

Hey Ma! Look at the pretty pattern in the canal!

http://www.brownstoner.com/brownstoner/archives/2009/06/more_gowanus_go.php

Posted by: kuroko at September 1, 2009 4:07 PM in response to First Closings Recorded at the Satori

I was going to buy it but that white door was a deal breaker.

Posted by: kuroko at August 18, 2009 2:44 PM in response to House of the Day: 315 Garfield Place

Benign Toxicity? Historically appropriate pollution? You guys work for Fox News?

I took the photo because it stopped me dead in my tracks. I'm not talking a little rainbow drifting off a creosote log piling. It covered several football fields!

Posted by: kuroko at June 15, 2009 2:38 PM in response to More Gowanus Goop

Out of scale to what? the massive school next door? The four story condos across the street? An as for the "down on its luck wood frame house" it replaced, it was way past down on its luck, it was a festering pile of sawdust that was beyond salvaging.

Not saying I love these, across the street looks more interesting, but I do think this is an appropriate tear-down and replacement job. Also, can't believe how fast it went.

Posted by: kuroko at February 10, 2009 11:36 AM in response to 357 Dean Street Hits the Market

Surely this house is priced by McCain's economic advisor who thinks the economy is sound. Hey, maybe it is one of the houses that senile old bastard has forgotten about?

Is there a more perfect day for this to be the house of the day?

Posted by: kuroko at September 15, 2008 2:40 PM in response to House of the Day: 315 Garfield Place

Biff...I disagree on the primary complaint...these works are failures...the salt water ate my tree/car complaint came two months after they were turned on.

Posted by: kuroko at August 28, 2008 2:16 PM in response to BHA Wants Waterfalls Shut Down

Bxgrl...PS 1 may still have some work up and Tanya Bonakdar Gallery in Chelsea represents his work.

Step away from the keyboard and get out and see the work. Failing that, here's his website: http://www.olafureliasson.net/

Posted by: kuroko at August 28, 2008 2:13 PM in response to BHA Wants Waterfalls Shut Down

With a team like this...

http://www.nycwaterfalls.org/#/waterfalls_team/Partners_and_Team

how could they miss?

The problem though is not necessarily with the execution so much as the ambition of the project.

They are competing with the context and the scale of the location. What sculpture up against the Brooklyn Bridge not to mention the wide open spaces of the East River is going to compete.

Olafur is a gifted artist but his work is more intimate than is required of a work up against the backdrop of New York City. This work would of been great installed in one of the ponds of Central Park or similar settings.

Too bad, but let's not let this prevent us from trying again.

Posted by: kuroko at August 28, 2008 12:43 PM in response to BHA Wants Waterfalls Shut Down

Sam, it was a bubble (that just popped) not go-go growth. This apartment is evidence of that. Additionally the broader economy has been anything but go-go...it has been so-so for the past eight years.

Is there anyone who does not believe that?

Posted by: kuroko at August 21, 2008 11:57 AM in response to Sales: Big Haircut Required To Get 160 Henry Street Done

"and corresponding decreases in go-go growth."

What planet have you've been living on Sam?

Posted by: kuroko at August 21, 2008 11:15 AM in response to Sales: Big Haircut Required To Get 160 Henry Street Done

Heather...I wrote "is" not "was".

Posted by: kuroko at August 18, 2008 4:24 PM in response to Checking In On Olive Park

"Well" connected moved out of that nabe years ago...dems only associates my friend. Fugeddaboutit.

Posted by: kuroko at August 18, 2008 2:38 PM in response to Checking In On Olive Park

"It had plenty of charm" - past tense.

"Orient Avenue used to be the nicest block in Williamsburg." - past tense.

"...and now it looks like this."

Heather, can't tell if you arguing for or against my assertion that this is a dirty charmless area.

Also, is this really Williamsburg or given it has a 11222 zip code isn't it more like Industrial Greenpoint?

As for real estate values in this area exploding, I think we are witnessing an opposite and equal response called implosion.

Posted by: kuroko at August 18, 2008 1:15 PM in response to Checking In On Olive Park

This is on a dirty charmless stretch of road surrounded by a dirty charmless neighborhood.

I heard the struts were glued on as an after thought when it was determined the building wouldn't stand up without them.

Finally, just west of here there are at least 12-15 condo developments that are dying on the market and going rental. Not much of an investment if you could get a loan at all.

No thanks.

Posted by: kuroko at August 18, 2008 12:31 PM in response to Checking In On Olive Park

"When you're a Jet, you're a Jet all the way!"

Posted by: kuroko at August 12, 2008 11:44 AM in response to The Next New Brooklyn

I always appreciated her distinctive aesthetic. It looked to be exceptionally well crafted and the expression of an authentic point of view about fashion. I hope she finds a more prosperous venture, personally and financially, equal to her prodigious talents.

Good Luck!

Posted by: kuroko at August 8, 2008 1:55 PM in response to Closing the Door on Ouvrez La Porte

I agree that they look nicer in person and I've never understood why people complain about being near a school. 3 months out of the year (not to mention after 3:30PM) it is empty, they maintain the building and the grounds, and when there are kids there they are supervised.

Price does seem a little steep for this market and that location but not by much.

Posted by: kuroko at August 5, 2008 4:35 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 324-328 Dean Street

Nope.

Not that price for that co-op in this market.

I'm guessing it closes just over 400K.

Posted by: kuroko at July 31, 2008 1:23 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 396 12th Street, #2R

Is this the same owners who renovated 209 Dean and got 3.25? The staged furniture looks familiar....

Posted by: kuroko at July 24, 2008 4:38 PM in response to House of the Day: 210 Prospect Place

http://milgo-bufkin.com/

ask for Joe when you call.

Posted by: kuroko at July 24, 2008 4:03 PM in response to metal worker

"Somewhere over the rainbow..."

Posted by: kuroko at July 17, 2008 10:39 AM in response to When's the Hoover Dam Going to Open?

Ignore all the advice above. I'll save you the hassle and give you $100K sight unseen just to relieve you of this terrible drudgery.

Posted by: kuroko at July 16, 2008 4:43 PM in response to Should I User a Realtor to Sell my House

I knew Chuck Keating when he was on trial in Chicago...kept two adjoining suites at the Fairmont Hotel (one for him, and one for his...ahem..."secretary". In between court dates he was filling his days protesting against pornography and/or abortion, and figuring out ways to get his lawyer to pay for dinner that included a '75 La Mission Haut Brion.

All this while pleading poverty to the judge.

Lovely, lovely man.

Posted by: kuroko at July 15, 2008 1:30 PM in response to IndyMac Fallout in Brooklyn?

BRAVO!

Posted by: kuroko at July 10, 2008 10:44 AM in response to Moving Forward

Irony : the use of words to express something other than and especially the opposite of the literal meaning

If we didn't have to provide a middle class wage than we could build more middle class housing....

Posted by: kuroko at July 10, 2008 9:53 AM in response to Do Union Demands Stymie Affordable Housing?

McCain recently admitted that he doesn't know how to use a computer...is this someone we want in charge of the largest (for now) economy in the world?

Posted by: kuroko at July 7, 2008 4:55 PM in response to Backyard Politics: Benches for Barack

11:03

"There are going to be so many disillusioned youngsters when he gets elected and nothing changes."

Yeah? That's what Nader and all his knuckleheaded supporters said in 2000 but that 2% in Florida would have meant an awful lot.

For instance:

We would of ratified the Kyoto Agreement.
We wouldn't be in Iraq which has now cost us 750 Billion, over 4000 American Soldiers, and tens of thousands of others.
We wouldn't have increased non discretionary funding by 200%.
We'd have agencies in the Federal Government like NASA, EPA, and HUD that actually function instead of being demoralized and in shambles. Katrina anyone?
We would have increased the number of people with health insurance.

Who you put in office does matter. Your vote does matter. Don't believe the cynics who say it doesn't matter. It just doesn't hold up under scrutiny.

Posted by: kuroko at July 7, 2008 4:32 PM in response to Backyard Politics: Benches for Barack

On so many levels, the storm drainage system in New York is set up for events like this.

We have enormous grates but their design is archaic and therefore inefficient at capturing hydraulic flow. Then when the water does go below street level, it lands in undersized catch basins who's effectiveness is undermined by spotty maintenance...they only get cleaned when they get clogged and only when someone bothers to call 311.

In a storm event, this is like filling a water balloon with a fire hose.

Prescription for the problem: Modern design "Vaned" grates, larger concrete catch basins, and twice yearly cleaning. After that pipe dream is fulfilled, we can tackle the issue of proper leaf disposal and the litter that clogs these catch basins!

Posted by: kuroko at June 30, 2008 9:29 AM in response to Over the Weekend, a Flood on Carroll Street

Yes, the rich are indeed cutting back by not purchasing that 20 million dollar Manhattan townhouse and buying this shack.

Sweet house, not much else like it in Brooklyn.

Posted by: kuroko at June 27, 2008 11:26 AM in response to Schloss Connelly In Contract

"They got a deal: $3,100 a month."

Really? Will anyone ever take this real estate salesman's word ever again? Wow.

Posted by: kuroko at June 24, 2008 10:28 AM in response to How Bed-Stuy Looks From L.A.

Gategate?

Posted by: kuroko at June 23, 2008 9:52 AM in response to Gate Thief Strikes Twice in Broad Daylight

"The only thing more pathetic than Indians on T.V. is Indians watching Indians on T.V."

Posted by: kuroko at June 19, 2008 1:36 PM in response to Three Brooklyn Winners on AMNY's Most-Fugly List

Brownstoner didn't comment on the recessed lighting? What's the world coming too?

Posted by: kuroko at June 18, 2008 1:14 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 35 Prospect Park West

Have any of these sold?

Posted by: kuroko at June 18, 2008 1:09 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 35 Prospect Park West

I can't help but think that the other post about folks moving in and other folks moving out isn't somehow connected to the uptick in this type of behavior. Bringing the Upper East Side and all it's trappings can cause resentments that manifest themselves in this type of behavior.

What's the solution? Keep your head up and when someone approaches you in a threatening manner, stop, face them, and scream your head off at them.

Physical violence may sound like a satisfying response but as my grandfather used to say, "Never fight with a pig, you'll both get dirty and he'll like it." Even if you are successful in beating the tar out of your assailant, you'll either end up defending yourself against the crowd of kids from across the street and/or defending yourself to the community starting with the phrase, "So I beat up the kid".

Posted by: kuroko at June 18, 2008 10:15 AM in response to Enough With the Marauding Teenagers!

Looks like Las Vegas to me.

Posted by: kuroko at June 17, 2008 10:39 AM in response to The Venetian: 16th-Century Living, Gravesend-Style

It's amazing what passes as commentary these days. I think many of them are delusional and so caught up in their delusional BS that they can't see straight. Give me a break.

Posted by: kuroko at June 17, 2008 8:42 AM in response to Closing Bell: Windows Brooklyn

That's not "The What". It's the fake "what".

Posted by: kuroko at June 16, 2008 5:03 PM in response to Quote of the Day

Besides...

Doesn't Alex Rodriguez get paid 25 million dollars a year for only being right a third of the time?

Posted by: kuroko at June 11, 2008 7:06 AM in response to Closing Bell: Brooklyn Bridge Park Demo Moving Along

Biff,

this house is in PS 38 and it sucks...PS261 has a great reputation...don't know anything outside of press articles about the Arabic Language school.

Posted by: kuroko at June 6, 2008 2:41 PM in response to Open House Picks

2:17...guessing you know exactly where the offers are coming in at because you have personally received them...curious to know why you haven't taken them in this market if indeed my guess is correct. Why not cut bait and move on?

Posted by: kuroko at June 6, 2008 2:28 PM in response to Open House Picks

Boerum Hill house has competition from two other properties on the same block and the same side of the street, one priced 200K more and one priced 200K less.

So, who's going to buy one of these? Nobody. 209 did get over 3 million but this house doesn't come close in terms of attraction, quality, and setup.

The house also is in the worst school district in that area so add 30K a year per child for private school to the cost of your mortgage.

Not feeling it at all. 1.9 million tops.

Posted by: kuroko at June 6, 2008 2:12 PM in response to Open House Picks

Francis Greenberger has a great nose for good opportunities and this is just the latest. TE will do very well over the long haul.

Getting the powers that be to pony up infrastructure improvements, especially transportation, will be the only challenge.

Posted by: kuroko at June 6, 2008 12:00 PM in response to Time Equities' Other Big Project on Sunset Park Waterfront

The street tree standards for the City of New York are the worst in the country. It goes against a host of ADA guidelines, gets worse with age, becomes a trip hazard, and collects garbage.

Me no likey.

Posted by: kuroko at June 3, 2008 4:57 PM in response to Closing Bell: Upgrade for Flushing Tree Plantings

Schwing!

Posted by: kuroko at June 3, 2008 1:33 PM in response to Condo of the Day: One Hanson Place, #21GF

I'd post the letter on a local real estate blog complete with name and contact information. The hyenas on say Curbed or Brownstoner would shame them relentlessly until they slunk away to Lodi.

Posted by: kuroko at June 2, 2008 3:46 PM in response to Dear Owner: I'm Not That Into Your Pad

I would prefer to have everyone logged in. In general, it leads to a more civilized debate, when comments can be attached to a name.

Posted by: kuroko at May 30, 2008 10:48 AM in response to Taking the Pulse on Anonymous Commenting

www.bilco.com

Posted by: kuroko at May 28, 2008 3:37 PM in response to roof hatches and ladders

I walked the Dean Street place during an open house and couldn't believe the lack of charm, the cheap fixtures, the lame finishes, and the wonky construction. But there you have it...2.4 million and only one unit left. Speaks volumes about the location and the value of off street parking.

Posted by: kuroko at May 28, 2008 12:00 PM in response to Last Week's Biggest Sales

I just discovered this old thread, and my husband and I are having a similar dilemma. Of course no one can decide for us but we'd love some feedback. We are currently interested in purchasing a 2 family townhouse on Jefferson Ave btwn. Malcolm X and Patchen. The house is beautiful, but we're not sure about the area. Several people have told us that we shouldn't go past Stuyvesant Ave. We've gone by the house many many times - at night during the week and on weekends, in the afternoon, weekend mornings, etc. No one has every bothered us, in fact most individuals are friendly or otherwise just mind their own.
Our other option is to buy a one-family in Bay Ridge - totally different area: tons of anemities, the water, bigger park areas (we have a dog who likes to run around in the park). However, with the Bed Stuy house we can get the rental income.
We are so totally confused! We do love the Bed Stuy house. BTW, I grew up in Brooklyn (I'm Italian American and a teacher); my husband is British (both white). We currently are renting in DUMBO. Thanks for any food for thought.

Posted by: Bubble at November 17, 2009 12:00 PM in response to Stuyvesant Heights Brownstone VS Clinton Hills Condo